Blue Card
by redpixel
Summary: Minako is unwillingly dragged into a cruel game by a mysterious stranger.
1. Chapter 1

**BLUE CARD**

* * *

"The game begins now!"

Minako felt a familiar presence as she opened her eyes. The scenery around her shifted, dark blots filled her vision. A violet light filled the space. She winced at the brightness, which made her eyes sting. There was no doubt about it though; she was underwater.

She pushed her arms out in front of her and accelerated towards the surface with a stroking motion. She breached the surface, pushing her soaked fringe away from her eyes with her left hand. She stretched her legs and found the floor. The water was shallower than she had originally thought.

Her head felt heavy, and she felt her heart pounding rapidly against her chest. She tried to take in her surroundings as quickly as possible. She currently stood in a pool surrounded by three velvet-padded walls. There was a single exit from the pool on the far side, with a staircase leading up to an open space.

"Welcome to the Velvet Room!" The statement was punctuated with a light chuckle, the voice cold and sharp. It was a man's voice, but it certainly wasn't Igor.

The bright violet light adjusted over the open space. Minako could make out a round table at the other side of the room. A figure was sitting on the far side, the bright light obscuring his features.

Minako waded through the water slowly. She felt horrible. The water washing around her waist kept knocking her off balance. She found it very difficult to think as well, trying to recall where she had been before. Her memories were fragmented and she could only recall the faces of her friends, and her memories of the Velvet Room.

"Please, have a seat." The man said as he lifted his hand.

Minako stepped out from the water. Her soaking wet uniform was caped around her body. Just as she went to adjust it, she stopped in disbelief. Her uniform was completely dry!

She shifted her weight cautiously, trying to maintain balance from the dizziness. She took a seat, glad to finally be off of her feet. Elizabeth was nowhere to be seen either. She tried hard to remember where she had been before. She could only hear the sounds of laughter in her mind, the sounds of her own laughter mixed with her friend's. Why was it so difficult to remember?

"We're going to have a little fun. This place has been boring for far too long." The man fell silent once again as he started to shuffle a deck of cards. "Don't worry. I've ensured that we won't be interrupted."

"Who are you? Is this the Velvet Room?" Minako asked.

"I guess you could say that. For now, it's the room in which our game shall begin. And who are you?"

Minako stopped for a moment. Did the man really not know who she was? Why had she been called here?

"Just kidding!" The man let out that cold chuckle once again. "Minako Arisato. Gekkoukan High student. Frequently spends her time with friends, or hunting that which we call 'Shadows'. If no friends are around, you're usually found at Hagakure or studying for exams. Sound about right?"

The man let out a great laugh. He spoke with confidence, but Minako still felt confused. She couldn't even find the strength to speak.

"That's not important for now anyway. This is the game room, and I am the dealer."

The man started to shuffle the cards quickly now. He kept his eyes on Minako as he mixed the cards together at lightning speed. "And so...!" The man slammed the deck against the table in front of Minako. "Try your luck!"

Minako's head had started to clear. She could remember the Velvet Room and all her friends, but not where she was and what she was doing before this. Even after the mental haze had lifted, she was still none the wiser.

Reluctantly, she placed her slender hand on the top of the deck and picked up a card. The card was pure blue. There was no artwork present on the card.

"Ah, the blue card! This will be fun!"

"What does this mean?" Replied Minako.

"So here's how the game is going to play out. I'll say this once, and only once. You will not interrupt." The man took a deep breath as he picked up the deck of cards and continued to shuffle them.

"Let's say, for example, other worlds exist, parallel to our own. In one world, you may be similar in personality, but have a different name. In another world, you may even be an introverted guy. The blue card itself IS the game. It will take you to these worlds that are not your own, it may even take you straight back to your own world. That wouldn't be any fun though, would it?

"You must investigate these worlds. You'll have limited time, depending how harsh the blue card is. If the world is your own, then all you need to do is shatter the blue card in the palm of one of your hands. Your hands can only crush it! It cannot be broken in an accident, and no one else in the world will be able to see it. However, if it is not your world and you crush the blue card, then you'll remain in that world forever.

"You have no memories of your world, aside from your friends. You will also replace any parallel version of yourself in different worlds. Some of the worlds you go to may be a little crazy! But that's the fun part of the game!"

This was all sounding very ominous to Minako. She was being forced to play a potentially dangerous game, in which she may not return to her own world and for what reason? Because this man thought it was fun?

"Of course, if it is not your world, then you only have to stay there for the allotted time. You'll return here after that. If you survive two worlds, then I shall let you draw another card. Perhaps this will be beneficial to you, perhaps not. Any questions?"

"Do I have a choice whether or not I play this game?"

"No. Not really."

"Why are you doing this?"

"I think we've talked enough for now. On your way! Oh, and one last thing… If you die in an alternate world, there is no going back. Same rules apply as your normal world."

The Velvet Room started to crumble around Minako, her mind clearing along with its disappearance. "Wait!" Minako's voice was drowned out by the sound of the crumbling room. It faded from view as Minako found herself sitting at her desk in Gekkoukan High.

It appeared as though she was stuck in a cruel game. She had to discern which world was her own with no memory of where she was before. This could be difficult...

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

* * *

Hello!

Been a little while since I've written some fan fiction!

I'll be honest now... This was another experiment. I have no idea where this story is going and I currently have no plans to continue it. Sorry! I'll leave it open for potential updates anyway.

This was an idea I've had for a while, but I was finding it difficult to get into writing it. This is mostly because it felt quite uninspired. I didn't want to waste what I had written though, so I thought I'd put it up here anyway.

I hope you enjoyed it!


	2. Chapter 2

**BLUE CARD - TWO**

* * *

The ambience of the classroom filled Minako's senses. The blue card sat in the palm of her shaking hand. Her mind was a mess of tangled thoughts. The man's words repeated over and over and yet she was still struggling to understand.

_Maybe I was dreaming?_

She slumped back in her chair, feeling genuinely tired from the ordeal. She wanted to believe there was a possibility that she was dreaming, but the blue card in her hand was evidence to prove otherwise.

"Are you okay?" Her thoughts were interrupted by an angelic voice. Looking up, she could see Yukari Takeba standing over her with a concerned expression. "You look pale."

"I'll be fine. I'm just tired," Minako said before letting out an exasperated sigh. There was far too much going on in her mind that she didn't understand. If this was a parallel world, would her friends here have any knowledge of the power of Persona? Was this the Yukari Takeba from the world to which she belonged? She could only remember the names and faces of her friends. Their personalities could be completely different from what she knew, but her memory wouldn't be able to tell her otherwise.

Trying to think nothing more of it for the moment, Minako pushed the blue card in to her pocket. It had a mystical glow to it; similar to the Velvet Key she had gotten from Igor.

_Perhaps that's my only hope. I need to find Igor and Elizabeth. Easier said than done though..._

"Maybe you should go to the nurse's office before class starts?" Yukari's suggestion was made out of kindness, but Minako perished the thought of consuming one of Mr. Edogawa's medicinal concoctions at this moment of time. Before she could reply the classroom door slid open. Akihiko stepped in dressed in the regular school uniform and a baseball cap.

"Hey, Yuka-tan! Minako-chan!"

Yukari's expression was one of disgust as Akihiko cheerfully walked towards the pair with a grin on his face.  
"Ugh, it's Akihiko. What is it now?"

"Have I got news for you ladies!" Akihiko thrust his fist in to the air like he was celebrating a victory at a boxing match.

_Boxing? Feels like there's something there... I can't remember!_

"Listen to this! There's this totally hot babe transferring into our class today, and rumour has it…"

"I bet you're the one who started the rumour." Yukari cut Akihiko off mid-sentence as she folded her arms.

"Yuka-tan, come on! Don't sweat the small details! Anyway, apparently this girl is a renowned delinquent where she's from. She just moved in to the Iwatodai dorms and get a load of this! She walked to school this morning with Junpei Iori, captain of the boxing team!"

"Seriously? Is that why everyone's so noisy?"

Before the conversation could go any further, the classroom door opened once again and Ms. Toriumi stepped inside, followed by a small-framed girl. "Everyone in your seats!"

Minako tried to focus, but her mind started to feel hazy once more. Time froze around the classroom. _"Can you hear me?" _A voice echoed in Minako's mind, breaking the silence. She recognised the voice as Elizabeth's.

"_I don't have much time, so I'll say this fast. We are aware of the situation. Please stay calm. We will get you—" _The voice was cut off by what could only be described as radio static within Minako's mind. Time resumed and the lively noise in the classroom returned once more as her mind cleared.

"Let's see. You can use the spare seat next to Minako-chan." Ms. Toriumi's announcement made Minako instinctively sit up straight in her seat.

The small-framed girl walked over to the seat next to Minako and threw herself in to the seat, coming across as completely unmotivated. Minako glanced at her, but the girl didn't so much as give her a look back. The girl who had transferred in to the class was Fuuka Yamagishi. She leaned back on her chair and seemed like she didn't have a care in the world. This was the rumoured delinquent, now seated next to Minako.

_Wait… That's it! That's what's out of place! How would I know Fuuka if she's only just transferred in to this school? I can't remember anything else though. Is this enough to wait it out?_

* * *

How much longer would the blue card give her? Based on the evidence, or what little of it she had, there was no way to be certain of her situation. If she crushed the card, then this world would become her own. If this was her world though, she risked never seeing it again if she allowed the blue card's time to elapse.

Minako stood alone on the rooftop of Gekkoukan High. It was peaceful up there, and it gave her time to really get her thoughts together, as best as she could anyway. The only thing she could see that was out of place was that she knew who Fuuka was and she had only just transferred to the school. Is it possible she could have known Fuuka when they were children though? She just didn't know.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sudden noise of the rooftop door opening and closing quietly. Junpei Iori was standing there with a smirk on his face. He slung his jacket over his shoulder and confidently paced towards Minako.

"Sorry I'm late. I had to fend off my fans." He stopped right in front of Minako, pushing his face almost close enough to feel her breath. "Shall we continue where we left off yesterday?"  
At that moment Minako began to feel incredibly uncomfortable. Junpei's free hand started to caress her hip, which made her instinctively shove him backwards. This situation definitely didn't feel right to her.

"What are you doing?" Minako said, starting to feel flustered. Her cheeks were burning red. If this wasn't her world, then she had replaced a parallel version of herself that was intimately involved with Junpei Iori.

"Come on. Don't be shy," Junpei replied as he dropped his jacket on to the nearby bench. He started to walk towards a frightened Minako. "You even gave me a peek yesterday."

_A peek? A peek! I would never do that!_

"P-Please. This is awkward." Minako felt her body hit the fence as she backed up. Junpei continued walking towards her.

"You're a lucky girl. These hands aren't just good for boxing." He pushed her up against the fence and rested his hand on her shoulder. This was definitely out of place. Even if Minako had feelings for Junpei is this way, she certainly wouldn't be having a secret lovers rendezvous with him on the school rooftop.

Her heart started to race faster. Without thinking, she thrust out her left leg and connected with Junpei's private area. He let out an awkward grunt and started to crumple to the floor. As Minako started to run away Junpei grabbed at her leg, getting a fistful of her sock. She lost her balance and almost went tumbling to the floor.

"Why you…" Junpei's face started to fill with rage. "How…dare you…do this to me."

"Let go!" Trying to struggle free, Minako kicked off her shoe. She shook her leg and used Junpei's grip to pull her sock off. She ran as fast as she could for the door, ripped it open, and hurried down the staircase as fast as she could. She stubbed the toes of her bare foot on several occasions as she made her way down the steps, which brought tears to her eyes. She could hear a limping, grunting Junpei giving chase not far behind.

As she neared the landing, she bumped in to Akihiko, whose face was in an expression of shock. This looked like an extremely awkward scene - a crying girl with missing clothes, and a beaten up guy in hot pursuit. She could now visibly see the anger in Akihiko's eyes.

"You think you can get away with this because you're the captain of the boxing team, Iori?" Akihiko stepped in front of Minako as he made his statement, getting his body between her and the injured Junpei.

Junpei chuckled at Akihiko's actions. "You have no idea. She was already giving up the goods."

Minako's eyes widened in disbelief at Junpei's statement, "It's not true! Well, I mean… I don't know if it's true. I did nothing with him though!"

"So you're a liar as well, Iori." Akihiko cracked his knuckles awkwardly as he stepped toward Junpei.

"Look, Sanada. I have business with Minako. If you don't want to feel the wrath of the boxing team, I suggest you step aside."

"I'm not going anywhere. If you're doing harm to the girl I like, I will stand and fight you."

Minako started to feel very awkward once again. In the space of a few minutes, she had been harassed by Junpei, and inadvertently confessed to by Akihiko. One thing was for sure though, even with very little evidence, the way she naturally reacted to Junpei's actions indicated to her that it wasn't her world at all. She certainly wasn't any closer to resolving this situation though.

Akihiko stepped forward and lunged towards Junpei, pulling his fist back as he did so. Junpei reacted, shifting his weight to avoid the punch. He swung at Akihiko and just before his fist collided with his jaw, time froze once again. Minako's mind went hazy.

* * *

"Yowza! That's certainly a mess I wouldn't want to be part of!"

The school crumbled away, and in its wake now stood the new Velvet Room. The table with the man sitting behind was in the exact same place as before, with his face still obscured by the poor lighting. The pool that she had originally emerged from had now vanished. In its place was a clear opening. The man clicked his fingers and a wardrobe appeared in the space, with a changing screen attached to it.

"Looks like that wasn't your world. Aren't you glad? Go ahead, take your time and change into a fresh uniform."

Minako looked down at her dishevelled uniform from her encounter with Junpei. She cautiously backed towards the wardrobe, keeping her eyes on the man at the table. "Care to explain why you're doing this yet?" Minako asked as she pulled the screen over and started to undress.

"Didn't I tell you? I'm bored. The Velvet Room never changes. It always functions the exact same way. I want to shake it up a little."

"This is dangerous though. What did I do to deserve this?"

"Nothing. You were simply Igor's current 'guest'. Bad luck, I guess?"

Minako pulled the screen back, now wearing a fresh school uniform. The man seemed careful with his words, and it was quickly becoming apparent that she wasn't going to get any answers out of him. She walked back towards the table and sat down in the empty seat once more.

The man started to chuckle to his self as he shuffled the deck of cards in his hands.  
"Well then. Time to move on to the next adventure. Provided this next world isn't your own, when you arrive here again I'll let you draw another card. Maybe we'll see each other again soon? And don't worry, I'll make sure dear Elizabeth doesn't intrude on our fun again."

The Velvet Room crumbled away once more. Minako was no closer to solving the mystery. Elizabeth had given her a brief glimpse of hope, but how long could she last before they finally got round to helping her?

* * *

**A/N: It's been six months, but I was finally able to get an idea of how to carry on this story. Chapter three is already in the works, so there shouldn't be a huge gap like the last time. Thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

**BLUE CARD - THREE**

* * *

The remaining shard of the Velvet Room faded away. Minako's vision was a blur, slowly coming back in to focus. She felt as though she had been sleeping. The warmth from the sun felt nice on her face.

"You're awake." A voice started to bring Minako around from her sleepy trance. She noticed she was resting on someone's lap and drearily sat up. A beautiful blonde girl was watching over her. They were on the rooftop of Gekkoukan High.

"Aigis." Something about Aigis' face made Minako feel relieved, like she was able to put her trust in her right away. She wasn't able to recall anything about the girl's personality though. Maybe she could tell her about the blue card and what was going on? Would she be aware of the world outside the normal, everyday life though? It's not a risk she was willing to take, in case she sounded completely insane.

The rooftop door opened, which made Minako jump. She had recalled the encounter she had with Junpei during her previous trip. What if the same thing happened in this world? She might not be so lucky making an escape this time.

A profound sense of relief washed over Minako as she saw who had just arrived at the scene. It was most definitely Shinjiro Aragaki, but his face was different to how she remembered it being. His hair was cut short. He was dressed neatly in the Gekkoukan High uniform. Perhaps this was her first clue though. If he didn't have the same look to how she remembered, could she risk waiting it out? Or maybe he had a haircut and she just wasn't aware of it.

"Were you taking a nap?" Shinjiro scoffed as he saw the scene in front of him. He was carrying three cans of juice in his hands as he approached the pair sitting on the bench.

"I wasn't sure what came over you. I thought you might be sick, but it looks like you were just tired. I couldn't bring myself to wake you." Aigis sounded like she was deeply concerned when she made her statement, almost as if Aigis was feeling emotions.

_Something's coming back to me. Did Aigis always speak this way?_

Minako was still struggling to come to terms with all this. Remembering the faces and the names was easy. There were small clues in their actions, or discrepancies in their situations that made it easy to figure out whether it was her world or not. There was always that small chance she was wrong though, and waiting it out could be the wrong choice.

She couldn't remember, but it wasn't as if the memories were not there. She could feel them jumbled around in her mind, as if they were trying to correct themselves. It was only small things that triggered her memory though.

_Me and my friends laughing, Akihiko and boxing, Shinjiro's hair, Aigis' speech… Why can't I get any further with those clues?_

Shinjiro sat on the end of the bench and passed a can of juice to Aigis and Minako. "Well, I took that Mitsuru girl down to the Faculty Office. She seemed pretty shook up."

"Mitsuru, I know her…" Minako heard another familiar name, a girl she hadn't bumped in to during her first trip.

Shinjiro clicked his tongue in response and took of long gulp of his juice. "Of course you know her. You sit next to her in class."

"Perhaps it would be wise if you went to see if she was okay," Aigis chimed in before cracking open the tab of her can of juice.

"I'm guessing you were pretty shook up as well, probably why you felt drowsy. I mean I haven't seen anyone that flustered since I confessed to Aigis." Shinjiro said it as if it was the most casual thing in the world.

Minako averted her gaze to a blushing Aigis. "I hadn't gotten round to telling you yet. Me and Shinjiro are dating now."

Minako attempted to probe her own mind for information, particularly about the pairing that was currently sitting with her. Were they like this before? Were they this close as she remembered them? She couldn't remember. "Congratulations, you two." That was all Minako was able to muster, as she couldn't read the situation at all.

Minako gulped down the can of juice as quick as she could. She had to do more investigating as she was already losing time. "Thanks for the drink." She stood and tossed the empty can into the nearby bin. "I guess I'll go see Mitsuru then."

"Please give her my regards," Aigis said as she smiled at Minako. Shinjiro offered no more words and continued to sip at his juice.

* * *

As Minako was approaching the Faculty Office, Mitsuru stepped out of the door. She had a book clutched to her chest, and glasses…?

_Okay, this is definitely not normal._

Mitsuru's glance caught Minako and she looked side to side before approaching her, as if she was about to be ambushed by a gang.  
"M-Mina-chan…"

_Mina-chan?_

"I-I… Thank you for s-standing up for me." Mitsuru clutched the book to her chest tightly, occasionally meeting Minako's dumbstruck expression and averting her gaze. "I d-didn't expect you to be so brave. When you didn't show up to Literature Club, I was so worried."

Minako's head was reeling. Nothing that Mitsuru was saying made sense to her, but it's not as if that would suffice as evidence. If she had taken actions in a certain situation prior to this conversation, would she still have the memory of it?

"Sorry. My mind's kind of fuzzy. What happened again?"

"O-Oh? W-well I came looking for you and found you sticking up for me against Takeba and her t-tennis club friends."

_Yukari is a bully in this world? That's different to the previous one. Then again, that previous one wasn't the one that I know…_

"Y-you was so cool!" Mitsuru's eyes sparkled with admiration before her expression turned to that of a downtrodden girl once more. "T-they came after me again though. Aigis-san brought me to the office."

Minako decided that she couldn't get much more out of Mitsuru other than what the current situation was. What could she do now then? Go and find Yukari? It seemed like the best option. "Where is Yukari now?"

"H-huh? She's at tennis practice. W-why do you want to know that?"

"We'll just say I have unfinished business with her." Minako turned on the ball of her foot and started to walk in the direction of the outdoor tennis courts.

"W-wait," Mitsuru cried out as she clumsily chased after Minako.

* * *

Minako approached the tennis courts, which were populated by the girls practicing. She only recognised the face of Yukari and Rio Iwasaki. As Yukari completed, and won, her match against Rio, she held her tennis racket up, imitating a rifle.

"Bang! That's six games now, Rio!"

Minako stared at Yukari's pose; an image of her holding a bow appeared in her head, another fragment of something that she could make no sense of at this point.

"M-mina-chan! Wait! Haven't we done enough?" A flustered Mitsuru started to tug at Minako's sleeve, trying to pull her away from the scene. There were even tears starting to well up in her eyes. Before she could pull Minako away, Yukari and the other girls had taken notice of them and were walking over in a group.

"Well, I didn't think I'd be seeing you again so soon." Yukari's face had a cruel smile plastered across it. Maybe this was evidence enough though. If Minako remembered these faces as being friendly, then would she really be at odds with Yukari right now?

"I heard you went after Mitsuru again." Minako decided to play along. Perhaps the cause of this rift was only between Mitsuru and Yukari and she had decided to try and fix it. She seemed to remember, just for an instant, some bad blood between the two. Not quite as bad as this seemed though…

"Yeah, what about it?" Yukari's friends were now whispering things behind her, as if they were all expecting a fight to break out. Some male students who had been watching the girls practice also started to gather. "You're certainly a lot more brave now. It was better when you nerds stayed in the Library. I'm not apologising to her if that's what you're here for. I'm not apologising about smashing your glasses either."

_Glasses? I don't wear glasses. Perhaps my parallel self does though?_

"Mina-chan, p-please. Let's go." Mitsuru continued her struggle to try and drag Minako away from the scene.

"Perhaps you should listen to her," Yukari's tone of voice was enough to irritate Minako at this point.

"Or perhaps I should smash something of yours to pay you back for the glasses," said Minako as she shook her arm free of Mitsuru's grip. Yukari's face suddenly contorted into an angered expression, she pulled her hand back in a motion to slap Minako. Time froze in place.

* * *

"Well that's certainly going to hurt for that other Minako, ha!"

The world crumbled around Minako and the Velvet Room came back in to view. The man was once again sat at the table, shuffling the cards extremely fast. All of a sudden, time in the Velvet Room came to a halt. A crack started to open up on the wall to Minako's right. She stepped over and looked through to see Elizabeth standing on the other side.

"Are you okay?" Elizabeth pushed her face right up to the crack, looking up and down Minako's figure to check for signs of injury.

"Well, I'm hanging in there, somehow…"

"I have to be quick. We're close to breaking through now. Please, don't do anything rash. We will come for-" The crack closed up before Elizabeth could finish her sentence. Time resumed in the twisted Velvet Room once more.

"Well that was rude," the man said, still sitting at the table shuffling his cards. He hadn't moved and didn't appear to be bothered by Elizabeth's intrusion. "Now where was I- Oh yes! You really should be careful with what actions you take. Obviously that wasn't your world, but you've certainly made your presence known."

"What do you mean?" Minako replied cautiously. Every time she entered this room she felt like she had to keep her guard up. It was the complete opposite to the Velvet Room she was used to.

"For the parallel you replaced, your actions more than likely just made their lives more difficult. Don't you think?"

His words struck Minako hard as she suddenly realised what she had done. It wasn't something she had taken into account when she was investigating the worlds. Had her actions destroyed the relationship of the Minako that was involved with Junpei? Not only that, but her actions had involved Akihiko as well.  
The supposedly quiet and restrained Minako, who looked out for her equally quiet friend Mitsuru, was now involved in a struggle with school bullies. Those different Minako's didn't deserve this.

"Come now, don't be depressed. We're having fun! That's two worlds now, so it's time for a game change!" The man let out a cruel laugh when he saw the despondent look appear on Minako's face. She lethargically made her way to the empty seat, almost as if she had lost control of her body. There was nothing she could do about those worlds now; she would have to live with that knowledge. Her meddling could potentially change many other things though.

The man started to shuffle the cards at lightning speed before slamming the deck on the table in front of her. "Try your luck!"  
Minako reluctantly pulled the card from the top. It was a plain white card with a picture of a crow on the front. At the sight of the card, the man let out a maniacal laugh. "It's really not your lucky day! I shall now explain the new rules before you move on. No interruptions."

She felt like burying her face in her hands and crying. It wasn't difficult for her to stay upbeat in most situations. She always saw herself as a positive person who valued her friends. It was starting to grate on her though, this 'game', these worlds, and this whole situation. It was too much.

"The card you have drawn is the Crow card! Now before I continue, please place the blue card face down on the table."

She reluctantly pulled the blue card from her pocket, glaring at the man that was the cause of all this. She placed the card face down on the table whilst contemplating whether or not she should just ignore his orders. Would that change anything though? For all she knew, the transportation to worlds would still continue. There was only Elizabeth and Igor left to rely on now.

"Now, please place the Crow card on top, face down."

She placed the Crow card she had drawn from the deck on top of the blue card. The two cards melded together and were enveloped in a flash of blue light. She picked up the blue card afterwards, which now had a picture of a crow on the face.

"The Crow card is a summoning card. In this case, I summon a special Shadow known as 'Crow'. He's a scavenger, hence the name. The thing he wants to scavenge the most is the blue card. As before, the same world rules apply only now there is no time limit. If it's your world, you smash the blue card. If you find it's not your world, you tap the front of the blue card twice to return here.

"If, however, you decide to take too much time and watch your actions, Crow will be coming for you. He is like every other Shadow in the essence that he will not hesitate to kill you. He wants to get to that blue card and without your Evoker… I think you can guess how that ends. Well, this should be fun! Good luck!"

He let out a triumphant laugh as the Velvet Room crumbled around Minako and the world, which was to be her next destination started to come in to focus.

* * *

**A/N: The most difficult part about writing this story, at the moment, is continuity. I have to make sure I don't slip up with Minako's knowledge of the others, and how much she knows when put in a certain situation. Still, I don't think I've made any mistakes so far. Feel free to point out any lapses in continuity if you see them though.**

**I got a couple of chapters of this story done today because I had quite a bit of free time. Chapter four will take a little longer, but rest assured it won't be six months again.**

**Thanks for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

**BLUE CARD - FOUR**

* * *

The fragments of the new world were shifting into place before Minako's eyes. She watched on with an empty expression. Her mind was still reeling from the man's words.

_"For the parallel you replaced, your actions more than likely just made their lives more difficult. Don't you think?"_

Her actions had proven her to be the exact opposite of what a leader should be. In her search for answers to appease her situation, she had only made life worse for everyone else. She had only been thinking of herself. A profound sense of guilt started to eat away at her.

In her daze she almost failed to recognise the situation unfolding before her. The fragments of the new world had indeed shifted into their rightful place. But now they started to shatter again, similar to her exits from the twisted Velvet Room.  
Minako tried hard to focus. She could make out some of the scenery that was already in place. It was a room at Tatsumi Memorial Hospital. It was only moments later that the scene had completely disappeared though. The shards now started to form a new image in front of her until she found herself sitting at a table for two in the Chagall Café.

This would be the first world she had arrived at alone. The aroma of fresh coffee clung to the air. It was a familiar atmosphere that Minako adjusted to quickly. As comfortable as she was though, she was not able to slow her thoughts at all. What she wanted more than anything right now was time to think her actions through, and what she would do from there.

Though it was definitely a more peaceful thought, to be rid of the time limit on the blue card. But now she had the Crow to contend with. How long before the Shadow started to hunt her? Without her Evoker, she was simple prey.

As Minako buried her face in her hands and wished this were all a bad dream, she heard the seat on the opposite side of the table clatter, followed by the sound of someone sitting down. It was certainly not a face that she was expecting to see.

"Elizabeth!" Minako rose to her feet rapidly, attracting stares from around the café. "You are the real Elizabeth, right?"

"I am." The Velvet Room attendant replied calmly, motioning for Minako to seat herself once more.

Minako felt like jumping across the table at that moment and hugging Elizabeth. She had not expected her to arrive so soon. With everything that had happened, Minako had started to lose hope. She glanced around the café and bowed slightly to the other customers before placing herself back in her seat.

"You must forgive me for getting straight to business. We have much to do and little time in which to do it," said Elizabeth, keeping her calm composure.

"You have a way out then? Can we use the Persona compendium?" Minako replied.

"I am afraid to say that I was unable to bring the Persona compendium." Elizabeth shuffled in her seat, and seemed somewhat out of place in the café. A few people had taken notice of her strange attire, but appeared to go about their business soon after.

"The compendium is an abundance of energy because of the Personas recorded within. Bringing it with me would have caused detection by the man responsible. I wished to remain undetected whilst I made contact with you and completed our mission."

"We have a mission? Will we be able to fix all of this?" Minako leaned forward, eager to find the answers to the questions she had.

"First, I can tell you now that this is not your world. The blue card was never meant to take you back to your own world."

Minako winced at those words, feeling her stomach knot. The man who was playing this sick game had lied to her.  
Elizabeth continued. "I know not what he was trying to achieve. Perhaps this was a test of resolve? If you had shattered the blue card then you would remain in that world, that much I know."

Minako started to feel very sick. On top of the guilt she felt from her actions and the revelation before her, the anxiety was becoming too much to bear. She gulped, swallowing the horrible feeling she was having, and trying to find her words. "Do you know who he is?"

"I do not. However, my master is aware of the culprit's identity. He states that he can be 'fixed'." Elizabeth watched as the anxiety clearly showed on Minako's expression. "Shall I continue?"

"Yes." Minako looked up with a darker expression as she responded. She needed answers more than these thoughts right now. She needed a way out of this sick game.

"Your parallel self currently resides in Tatsumi Memorial Hospital after an accident. This is where you were originally going to arrive. I brought you in as a separate entity."

"Separate entity? You mean I'm actually myself and not taking on the actions of another?"

"Correct. The people here will not remember the actions you take in this world after we are gone. Whilst they will perceive you as the Minako you replaced, your actions will not affect her life."

Minako breathed a sigh of relief as she heard those words from Elizabeth. If only this option had been available to her before, her actions would not have changed the lives of the other girls. Then again, those girls were not out of action in the hospital. Minako was positive she couldn't explain two of the same girl in a certain world. Her head started to spin even at the thought.

Elizabeth's expression changed to a stern look as she continued. "Our mission is to create a 'tether' between you and your friends. By making the connection, we can bring you back to your world. This is achieved through interaction."

"Like social links?"

"In a way. Think carefully now. The interactions you have made with alternate versions of your friends could have triggered an 'echo effect', specifically an image of what that person was like in your world."

Minako instantly remembered the images she had seen in her mind during her trips to the alternate worlds. Akihiko was celebrating a victory in a boxing match, and Yukari was holding her bow.

"These echoes do not always occur. However, those you have interacted with have already tethered your existence to your true world. Which friends are you yet to interact with?" said Elizabeth.

"Thinking back, I met Yukari and Akihiko in the classroom of the first world. I met… Junpei on the rooftop… Aigis and Shinjiro, they were a cute couple in the second world; I met them on the rooftop as well. Mitsuru was my friend in that same world. I remember seeing Fuuka in the first world, but not interacting with her… So that leaves Ken, Koromaru, and Fuuka."

"Then we know where we stand."

"So just interacting with those three will get me back to my world?"

Elizabeth placed her hands on the table in front of her as she stood from her seat.  
"Almost. Making the links will allow my master to retrieve you or, in theory, allow us to bring objects from your world. Our current goal is the deliver your Evoker to you."

"Why?" said Minako as she stood up from the table, following Elizabeth's cue.

"There is a problem that could affect any person within this world now."

"You mean the Crow?"

"Correct. Since you are a separate entity, you should be able to summon a base Persona with your Evoker, even if the Dark Hour does not exist in this world. We need to complete the tether before the Crow arrives though. What is to be our first destination?"

"The dorms. There's bound to be someone there," Minako replied.

"Very well. Shall we proceed?"  
Elizabeth held the door open, allowing Minako to exit first. They knew what needed to be done to fix this mess now. It was just a matter of if they had enough time. The two of them set out, on their way to the Iwatodai Dorms.

* * *

The sun had just about set before Minako and Elizabeth arrived at the dorms. They had been careful to try and avoid contact with people that Minako knew from before. The final links were all that mattered now. Wasting time explaining why Minako was not in the hospital in this world would only prove to be fatal by the time Crow arrived. They couldn't even be sure that they had enough time now.

As they approached the dorm, Minako's anxiety started to fade away and she felt a great sense of relief. Sitting on the steps outside the dorms was Ken Amada, accompanied by Koromaru.  
Sensing the approach of Minako and Elizabeth, Koromaru started barking and alerted Ken to their presence.

"Minako-san," Ken said, his eyes widening in disbelief as he rose to his feet.

"Hello Ken." Minako smiled at him as she responded.

"But how…? You were in the hospital."

"It's difficult to explain." Minako paused, trying to find the right words. "Ken, do you trust me?"

Koromaru barked and furiously wagged his tail, as if affirming to Minako that he trusted her. She crouched next to Koromaru, flattening her skirt behind her knees as she did so. She stroked behind Koromaru's ears as he happily wagged his tail.

"Well… We haven't talked much since I moved in. Yamagishi-san seems to trust you though. If our leader trusts you, that's good enough for me."

Minako had to hold back a smirk. She tried to imagine Fuuka as the leader of the group with her timid nature. That's when it hit her. She had her memories back. She was able to remember all of her friend's personalities from the world that she belonged to. Was this because Elizabeth had separated her from the parallel self?

She smiled reassuringly at Ken. "I need to find Fuuka. Is she inside?"

"She's not here…" Ken looked down at his feet as he responded to the question.

"Could you tell me where she is?" Minako replied.

"I can't… If Akihiko-senpai, or Mitsuru-senpai found out, they'd all be in big trouble."

"It's very important. She could be in danger," Elizabeth said, with Ken only now noticing her presence. Koromaru had not reacted to the Velvet Room attendant's presence either. She kept her blank expression as she looked into Ken's eyes.

Ken pondered for a moment before answering. "They said they were going to school. They're going to have a test of courage when it gets dark."

The school was still quite the distance away. Minako had no way of knowing if Fuuka would still be there when she arrived. Would they have enough time before Crow made his inevitable appearance?

"Thanks Ken! I should probably get going!" Minako's voice let out a tone of desperation. She could see the end in sight. She just had to get there.

As she turned on her heel, she heard Ken shout out, "Wait. Is everything okay?"

Even if he was going to forget everything afterwards, they couldn't afford to explain the situation now. Elizabeth crouched by Ken and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry about a thing. We'll sort this out."

Ken looked down at Koromaru, who tilted his head to the side. "Okay. Just don't tell Akihiko-senpai, or Mitsuru-senpai."

Elizabeth smiled before standing. "We won't."  
She turned towards Minako and they both broke into a light jog as they made their way to the station, hoping they'd get to Fuuka in time.

Ken just stood and watched, with Koromaru still at his side, as the two of them disappeared into the night. He finally made his way into the dorm, followed by Koromaru.

* * *

"I have confirmed the link with Ken Amada and Koromaru is complete. We are close now," Elizabeth stated as the two of them arrived at the gates of Gekkoukan High.

Minako tried to glance through the gates to see if she could make out any movement from within the building, but to no avail. She decided that if they entered the school building, they more than likely took the side entrance.  
In fact, she had recalled a time when Junpei left the door unlocked when they took part in the operation to save Fuuka from Tartarus. Again, it felt strange to Minako that she was slowly regaining the memories that had disappeared.  
"We'll try the side entrance. Let's go."

After successfully making it into the school building, they now had to find Fuuka. It wasn't going to be easy, especially in the dark. They made it to the entrance hall, near the shoe lockers and had made no contact with the group. Were they even here anymore? She had to keep looking, no matter what.

"Should we split up?" Minako suggested to Elizabeth.

"It is not the most advisable course of action. When we complete the links, I will have to be present to summon the Evoker to this world," Elizabeth responded.

"Okay then. I guess we'll go check the Faculty Office and see if there are any keys missing. There might be a clue." Minako skipped ahead as she finished her sentence, with Elizabeth in tow.

They arrived at the Faculty Office to find the door ajar, which immediately set alarm bells ringing in Minako's mind. If was quite possible that they might run into the security guard, being on the school premises at night. However, the Faculty Office was dark. If the security guard were present, they would at least see the light from his torch.

Taking a deep breath, Minako and Elizabeth stepped inside, closing the door behind them. They heard rustling noises from the far side of the office. Minako could barely make out some movement. It looked as though there were two people trying to sneak to the other set of doors.

"You can come out!" Minako took a gamble and decided to address whoever was in the darkness. The movement stopped and one of the figures stood upright and came stomping towards Minako and Elizabeth.

"What the hell are you doing here? When did you leave the hospital?" The tall and scruffy Shinjiro Aragaki came out from the shadows using the light from his phone to see her face. Aigis was not far behind the lumbering brunette.

"It's complicated…" Minako felt like she was being interrogated. The light was dazzling her, and she could make out Shinjiro's frowning expression just behind the light.

_"Anyway, what is it with these two hanging out together?" _Minako thought to herself.

"Minako-san. It is good to see you up and about. How did you know where to find us?" Aigis seemed more composed, calming the storm that was Shinjiro.

"I spoke to Ken… It's not important anyway. I need your help. I need to find Fuuka," Minako tried her best to sound calm. It was tearing her apart that she couldn't even speak to her friends properly. No, these were not her friends. These were the friends of the Minako in the hospital right now. That's what she had to keep telling herself.

"Tch." Shinjiro turned away in one of his usual moods.

"Fuuka-san and Junpei-san are on the second floor. We split up into couples," Aigis replied.

"No Yukari?" Minako asked.

"She said she was studying." Aigis responded.

Minako glanced at Elizabeth who nodded in her direction. They just had to make it to the second floor and encounter Fuuka for this nightmare to come to an end.

"Right, let's go find-" Minako was cut off mid-sentence by a horrifying screech that made her blood curdle. The school walls shook and the windowpanes trembled. She felt her stomach knot again and the feelings of anxiety came rushing right back to her.

"What the hell was that?" Shinjiro exclaimed.

Elizabeth looked at the group with a grave expression on her face.

"The Crow is here."

* * *

**A/N: Just a quick note this time. **

**The next chapter is going to be the finale. I originally stated that I had no plans to continue this story. This was because I didn't want to stretch the idea too far. Now I've had this plan for a while and five chapters is enough for me to tie up the loose ends.**

**I hope you've enjoyed it so far anyway. The final chapter should be up soon (I hope).**


End file.
